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Long time (I guess) member and reader, first time glocker. I just purchased my first firearm (used buddies before, never had the $ as a poor student before to afford my own) a G17 Gen 3 plain jane black. I was wondering if I could get some help.

#1 Sights. I've heard about XS sights, but recently I purchased Magpul's Dynamic Handgun DVD where they mention that you might want something with a bit more targeting resolution. I was wondering what sights you recommend and why. I'm looking at 10-8 and Warren tactical. Thanks.

#2 Cleaning - what cleaning products do you recommend and what do I need to clean my glock right? I've never cleaned a gun myself, so I want to know what products (brushes, chemicals, etc.) I need.

#3 Other mods, especially grips. - I got the Gen 3 primarily because my local shop didn't have an RTF for me to feel and I figured I could always add tape if it was slipping on me. What grip tapes, decal grips do you recommend and do any of them come in anything other than black? I got the black version and it looks a bit plain to say to least.

Also, I have to say I really like the 21SF. I played around with the one they had and it really fits my hand well. I would have picked it up had 9mm ammo prices not been so low compared to 45 right now.

Also, before I forget, the gun looked a bit dirty with copper fouling at the bottom of the slide. I'm wondering if this is just fouling or if I should be concerned. The 21SF I fondled also had similar fouling, but a bit less. Thanks again.

If you bought the gun new or nearly new that copper looking stuff is anti-seize grease put in by Glock Inc. Put a small drop of oil in each place that the instruction manual says to before shooting it. Don't shoot unjacketed lead in the factory barrel. Don't get oil, solvent, other liquids, or foreign debris into the firing pin channel or other internals of the slide. Before you reassemble the gun, be sure the base of the guide rod is seated into the crescent shaped notch in the barrel lug(it slightly pops out on its own if you didn't take it or the barrel out of the slide).

Only use solvent inside the barrel, no where else. Everything else should be wiped dry, then wiped down with slightly oiled patches/rags. You shouldn't get oil on the breech face because it can get inside the firing pin channel, just wipe it down with clean dry patches/rags or brush it with a clean dry brush while the slide is pointed muzzle down so debris doesn't fall into the firing pin channel. Don't get oil in the magazines or leave any oil inside the barrel because it can contaminate ammunition and make it misfire or not fire. Some people put oil inside the barrel, then run patches through it until they come out absolutely dry. Just don't leave any oil inside the barrel because it could also cause over-pressure if a round is fired. The brush that comes with your Glock should work fine, field strip the gun, dip the bore brush lightly in solvent and run it through the barrel from the chamber end, never the muzzle end. Let the solvent soak inside the barrel for a few minutes then run patches through until it's dry. Run the solvent soaked brush again, let soak, run patches until they come out nearly clean. Let the barrel dry. Once everything is clean, apply small drops of oil for lubrication according to the manual and reassemble the pistol. Don't put any magazine or any ammunition in the gun yet, but still treat it like it's loaded for safety reasons. Cycle the slide a few times to evenly distribute the oil and you can even dry fire a few times(while pointed in a safe direction) to evenly distribute the oil you place in the interface between the connector and trigger bar. Never use a steel brush anywhere on a Glock.

Congrats by the way!

In terms of sights, are you going to shoot competition or just use the gun for defensive purposes/range purposes? If competition, you might want more precise sights. If defense, you want sights that make it easy to acquire a sight picture quickly and can even work in low-light situations(night sights).

Other mods, you might try Talon Grips. If you don't mind adding a little bulk to the grip, a Hogue HandALL grip can feel nice but it still gets slippery with sweat. The Hogue HandALL comes in black or OD, but an OD grip on a black gun might look awkward.

I wish I could add to voyager4520's post, but that is a FANTASTIC summary.

If you are in the Orange County, CA area and need help or have questions, please feel free to PM me to set up a meet at The Firing Line in Huntington Beach.

I'm mechanically "ok" and have tools but was very nervous about really taking a Glock apart past a simple field-strip. I was worried for no reason, once you have done it you will see how simple it is, noooo sweat after that for you. Brilliant design!

I have a number of Glocks in various calibers and will be glad to share what I know about them / let you test them out (ammo on your dime )

#1 Sights. I've heard about XS sights, but recently I purchased Magpul's Dynamic Handgun DVD where they mention that you might want something with a bit more targeting resolution. I was wondering what sights you recommend and why. I'm looking at 10-8 and Warren tactical. Thanks.

As always, thanks for the help.

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Sights are dependent on what their purpose will be. I love XSsights. Dot the "I" and place the big dot on the target. Very quick target acquisition and accurate enough for combat. @ 25' I can put all shots in the X ring. If you feel you need more target acquisition, get the Small Dot (standard dot) site. But in all honest, in my opinion, Big Dot sight is the way to go.

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